Once upon a time… Part II

On that day, she encountered a stranger, a young man who was hunting in the forest. He was strong and handsome, with deep brown, sparkling eyes and a mysterious smile. He was a hunter from a neighboring village hidden in the hills. His gaze revealed that he, too, was captivated by the mountains, just as she was.
Rosalina, having noticed his arrival, waited for a moment. She watched his clumsy attempt at aiming, and with a steady hand, shot the hat off his head, even before he had a chance to react. It fell into the snow.
He looked around, outraged, and spotted her.
“You wouldn’t have hit it anyway,” she said with a mischievous grin.
He seemed speechless, surprised to see her here in this wild solitude. But something about her drew him in – her independence? Her determination? Or perhaps that quiet grace?
“What brings you to this deep winter forest?” she asked, still laughing.
“I’m on a journey in search of a special goal,” said the young man in a soft, respectful voice, still stunned.
She gracefully slid off Rada into the deep snow.
“And what brings you here?” the young man asked, as he regained his composure.
She was silent for a moment, which seemed like an eternity to him, and studied him.
“I’m looking for something, but I don’t know what,” she said. He didn’t quite understand. She continued, “I’m looking… for my way.”
He asked in confusion, “Did you get lost? May I offer you my help?”
After a while, she answered calmly. “Maybe I have, but I don’t need help.” Her mysterious answer only made him more curious.
The young man grinned. “And what will you do now?”
She shook the thoughtful look off her face and replied, now laughing, “Live, my unknown friend. An adventure! I’m looking for something that challenges me,” Rosalina said with a sparkling glance. “Come, ride with me through the mountains. Maybe we’ll find something that will make our hearts beat faster.”
The young man, curious and inspired by her energy, agreed, and so they rode together through the snowy hills, side by side on their magnificent white horses.
They spent days in silence, on other days, they couldn’t stop philosophizing about God and the world.
The young man, fascinated by her openness and wisdom, quickly felt at home.

One night, as his eyes began to close by the warmth of the campfire, they heard a faint crackling from the thicket behind him. They were not alone.
Already half asleep, Rosalina instinctively reached for her bow. The hunter quickly got on his feet, and right after, they saw the large yellow eyes. A mighty wolf, roaming the mountains, was approaching, hungry and wild.
“Don’t move!” The arrow whizzed past his ear.
With an elegant shot, she struck the animal – not fatally, but enough to drive it away.
The young man, still stunned by the shock, didn’t fully grasp what had just happened.
“You saved me,” he said, recovering from his fear. “You’re strong and brave, like a warrior.”
Rosalina laughed and clinked her cup with his. “Maybe I’m the Princess of the Mountains, but I don’t need a prince. I’m my own hero.”

The young man, now in deep admiration and with a quiet affection, knew he had seen in Rosalina a woman who needed no saving, nor a prince. She was everything she wanted to be – strong, independent, and at the same time, the most delicate flower the winter had ever seen.
The next morning, Rosalina continued her journey, the white winter landscape ahead of her, adventure in her heart, and the wind carrying her freedom. She knew that the real treasure wasn’t in a castle or in a prince, but in the discovery of one’s own strength and the freedom to walk one’s own path. No one could ever do justice to what life itself is worth. It offers so much more than our imagination can ever show us.
And as the young man traveled back to his village, he knew that he would never forget Rosalina – the Princess of the Mountains, who in winter was like a blooming flower, strong and fragile at the same time.
And so, the Princess of the Mountains lived not as a fairytale figure, but as the woman she wanted to be. And even though the young man she had saved never truly stood by her side, he was still a part of her journey – as a friend, an admirer, a quiet companion on the path to self-discovery.

The snow, the wind, and the mountains were her companions, and she was the mistress of this wild world.
The End.

By Sarah K.